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Horoscopes | Week of January 11-17, 2010

ARIES (March 21-April 19): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Aries, this eclipse falls in your solar 10th, widely recognized as the astro-place where we toil to attain much-yearned-for heights in our career or community involvements… and an area of your life that continues to receive mad planetary stimulation. I almost feel like it's excessively repetitive to, yet again, point out how this is your moment to 'go in for the kill' when it comes to finally getting noticed for a major contribution. But it's my job to call it like I see it, and I spy this as another opportunity to goad you onward and upward. Let's add this extra bit of insight: Having merely identified the big goal isn't enough, since, at that intimidatingly large size, it's too hard to know where to begin. Split it into smaller benchmarks that you can aim for, independently of one another. And then, beneath each of those benchmarks, list the three-to-five bite-sized tasks that, when all completed, will logically add up to you having hit that mark. At that point, you'll have a fairly lengthy catalog of easy-to-tackle bits of work at your disposal, from which you can choose, on any given day, which one or two items feel best suited for your attention, based upon that day's vibe, schedule or instincts. Such a method provides you both an organizational backbone and the flexibility to follow a moment's impulses, which you Aries types thrive on. You certainly don't lack the guts or person-power required for climbing up that hill. It's the marshalling, moderating structure to sustain you all the way (without burning out too quick or veering off on a detour) that invites you to claim its challenge.

TAURUS (April 20-May 20): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Taurus, this eclipse falls in your solar 9th, another indicator that your personal defining ideologies are in need of some seriously thoughtful reconsideration. We already discussed this a few weeks back, when I pointed out the fact (easy to miss when you're just living each day as it comes) that you have evolved considerably from the last time you sat down to describe (to yourself, if not to others) what type of person you envision yourself to be. 'Forward-thinking' continues to be the buzzword-concept I want you to embrace… not just in terms of carefully watching your career path or bank balance, but much more broadly to include places you'd like to visit, topics you'd like to study, situations you'd like to behave more conscientiously in, and contributions you'd like to make to enhance the experience of this shared reality. Time passes us by more quickly than we might sometimes prefer, and especially so for you Taureans, who are known to 'progress' more gradually (but with surer footing) than many other signs. I don't want you to wake up one day to find the years have left you old and infirm before you've had the chance to expand your horizons as you'd most desire, so busy were you just 'taking care of business' on the strictly mundane level. Get at least one perspective-shifting journey (if not more!) onto your calendar of intentions now… and it'll be much likelier to actually happen sometime this year (or decade).

GEMINI (May 21-June 20): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Gemini, this eclipse falls in your solar 8th… yet another reiteration of that unavoidable call to consciously come to terms with intricate, formidable and/or potentially unpleasant interpersonal realities, which aren't likely to 'resolve themselves' simply by you hoping them away. I wish I didn't have to perpetually dwell on this fact, my darling twin-soul, but even a Gemini like you doesn't have enough cheeks to 'turn the other one' in this case. The 8th house nearly always involves some shadowy truth that smacks of injustice, indebtedness, or other so-called 'ugly feelings'—financial inequities, sexual improprieties, psychological inconsistencies, even the looming presence of ill-health or mortality. None of us who lives a decent span of years gets to escape the intrusion of 8th-house conditions or events into our 'otherwise quite fine, thank you' existences. Rather, it is how we contend with the plate of difficult-to-digest morsels in front of us that separates the weak-willed whiners (i.e., those wimpy folks you don't want on your team, should you find yourself in a fight for survival, because all they can do is complain about how cold it is or how their feet hurt) from the powerful souls who, though they too might prefer a smoother voyage, will not hesitate to dive into the choppy waters… mainly because they can see beyond that trial to the eventual 'Triumph of Spirit' on the other side and are, consequently, eager to get there sooner rather than later. Does that vision make it easier? Not necessarily. But by virtue of their willingness to 'get there' already, the braver ones do not fearfully prolong their agony—and ultimately save themselves days, months or years of unnecessary anguish.

CANCER (June 21-July 22): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Cancer, this eclipse falls in your solar 7th, the one-on-one relationship house, where there's no evading the calling to acknowledge that you need specific things from specific people. Hardly new news, right? But rather than reduce this call to a repeat of last week's 'people need people' generalities, I ask that you be more precise about what you need from whom. That'll also require, therefore, a reevaluation of any beliefs you hold that might classify such explicit identification of certain individuals as possessing particular 'uses' to you as somehow exploitive or distasteful. All relationships are based on each party exchanging something useful with the other (e.g., professional camaraderie, trustworthy companionship, entertaining hilarity, emotional intimacy). Only, we typically don't like to consciously think about or discuss our relationship in such terms, resistant as we may be to recognizing our own self-serving interests. Yet, why would anybody ever bother participating in relationships (which aren't exactly simple-as-pie and often require much work) if they weren't personally getting something from it? Deliberately considering what you're getting doesn't preclude you from also generously giving to the other person at the same time. Not considering what you're getting (or not getting), however, merely leaves your own behavioral tendencies unexamined—which hints at repressed relationship dissatisfaction.

LEO (July 23-August 22): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Leo, this eclipse falls in your solar 6th, the site of our daily rituals and routines and, therefore, the defining locus of whether these are serving to improve (or at least maintain) our health and productivity… or whether they prevent us from taking proper care of ourselves and our responsibilities. That said, if you're looking to reverse some trend of bodily decline or reinvigorate the work-ethic that drives you to effectively fulfill your commitments and obligations, this is a rather apt time to solicit a firm pledge from yourself to reorder your habits. Be aware, however, that doing so will not reap you instant results. The very point of 6th-house activities, after all, is to replicate these mundane steps over a length of time—while simultaneously deferring immediate gratification—in order to build behavioral patterns that yield an enhanced quality of everyday existence unavailable through quick-fixes or one-time dramatic gestures. Furthermore, the ever-present (at least through mid-March) interference of Mars retrograde in your sign only increases the likelihood that spontaneous urges will arise to test any such resolve on your part, threatening to spoil such longer-term undertakings as habit-rebuilding with the shiny appeal of 'wanting something now'. Which is why daring to embrace a consistent program at this juncture may be just the ticket to preventing Mars from overtaking your goals with impulsive actings-out. But please stick to the day-to-day, without hunting for signs of obvious benefits. At this early stage, it's all about the practice.

VIRGO (August 23-September 22): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Virgo, this eclipse falls in your solar 5th, where we claim our entitlement to relish the pleasurable, playful aspects of our life… a necessary counterbalance to all the austere attention and productivity we pour into our essential responsibilities. And Lord knows, of all the signs, you Virgos are likeliest to overdose on the dutiful, while dismissing the light-hearted mischief as wholly irrelevant to 'what really must get done'. Yet, such habits rob you of one central requirement for your being able to persist in all that 'getting-done': having enough totally-unrelated-to-work, low-pressure moments to curiously explore the world's many delights, so you're refilling your proverbial cup with happy juice (and, therefore, are far less likely to glimpse your remaining days as one long expanse of tasks to complete or methodologies to perfect). Here in horoscopeland, we've been batting this notion around for a little while now, including last week's discussion of how phantom 'manias, phobias and/or paranoias' could block your road to revelry. Now, I ask you to up the stakes beyond merely considering your enjoyment with more seriousness. To cement the importance of evolving this sector of your life, then, I urge you to make a commitment to regularly integrating fun into your weekly routine. Enroll in an art class, writing workshop, or dance studio. Plan to cavort on the town with pals at least one night a week. Make a non-negotiable play date with yourself on Saturday afternoons. Something, anything, that is unrelated to your day job or other responsibilities, provides nothing of 'use' (other than joy) to anyone else, and affords you little immediate expectation of 'mastery' or 'expertise'.

LIBRA (September 23-October 22): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Libra, this eclipse falls in your solar 4th, the zone of domestic privacy, where each of us (hopefully) advocates for a sufficiently restorative home-environment (and whatever that entails) to ensure our emotional stores can hold us together once we're back out in the disordered outside-world. Simply put, to pull off the Libran self-steadying act of 2010, you need to feel safe and sound, comfy and cozy, and (perhaps most importantly) properly indulgent of what you want (as opposed to what'll make somebody else feel safe and sound and comfy and cozy, at your expense) when you're decompressing at your home base. If this is not presently the domestic situation in which you find yourself, then I strongly recommend pledging to remedy that unsatisfactory circumstance sometime in the next six months. Naturally and appropriately, you put a lot of energy into being interpersonally considerate, fair-minded and easy to get along with, when it comes to your public presentation… way too much, in fact, to justify making that same expenditure of people-pleasing perfectionism inside the walls of your inner sanctum. At this time, when heightened diligence is being demanded of you at nearly every turn, the relief of returning each day to a happy home must not be sacrificed. Feel like you're stuck on this issue? Start small, building on each step, until that apparent 'stuckness' reveals its illusory nature. You deserve a sanctuary within which to treat your internal well-being as sacred.

SCORPIO (October 23-November 21): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Scorpio, this eclipse falls in your solar 3rd, which, first and foremost, indicates your best tactics really must involve some sort of social interactivity, in a scope much wider than that same small gaggle of individuals you always hang with. What's the point, after all, in having another brilliant brainstorm of interesting ideas, if you merely hold them inside, where they do nobody much good, until a hypothetical future moment when you imagine you might gain something from their revelation? Spread 'em now, since the world and its inhabitants aren't getting any younger or healthier by hoping tomorrow is full of magical deus-ex-machina answers to today's problems. To stay too quiet at this juncture is to limit both others' capacity to learn and evolve from your wisdom and your own ability to connect with acquaintances, neighbors or total strangers who may possess their own bits of insight, which could totally transform your whole way of thinking through an offhand remark or casual question. Hop on your Facebook or flip through your personal phone-book for starters, and identify a handful of stimulating individuals with whom you've fallen woefully out of touch. Then, get in touch with one a week for as long as it takes to catch up with the whole list. Ask 'em what they're up to. Tell 'em what you're up to. Disseminate personal narratives freely, without worrying about what they're going to do with the new knowledge about you. In this phase, it's far better for more people to know more about you than it is to keep withholding those details, as if the secrecy actually serves you.

SAGITTARIUS (November 22-December 21): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Sagittarius, this eclipse falls in your solar 2nd, the house of finances and material security… though I'm going to assume you're hardly surprised by that, considering the recent stream of horoscopes sprinkled with encouragements to be wise with your resources, rather than too quickly buying into others' reassurances or shortsightedly claiming money doesn't matter. I'll bet that, even without my words of guidance, you already know economic reality is one prime defining force in your life with the power to frustrate your idealistic nature. Indeed, it almost works against you that you can see through the veneer of money's worth, with the awareness that those experiences and adventures where real meaning can be found are not a factor of paper currency or coinage. And yet, as long as the rules we collectively play by include exchanges of dollars-and-cents to buy us back our time and freedom from the capitalist machine (and while perhaps those rules are changing more quickly than they have in a while, they presently remain in effect), we do need to manage our bank-balances with care. Please think about it in these terms, as you (hopefully) structure your budgetary map for the upcoming many months once and for all, so you don't resent having to continually consider these economic inconveniences. In fact, in an odd irony, the more detailed effort you put into this work now, the freer you will feel later, throughout those coming months, to not have to concern yourself with day-to-day judgment calls. Those calls will have already been made, difficult though they may have been… leaving you ample mental energy to chase 'the real meaning' while staying within your means.

CAPRICORN (December 22-January 19): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn (one you should know plenty about already, being a native and all)—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. And since this eclipse falls in your sign, Cappie, it's obviously most significantly yours for the making… a veritable invitation to visualize exactly how you want the world to perceive you, as you continue coming into your own, thanks to Pluto's transformative impact. As you masterfully string together the various steps it'll require you to climb from here to there, you'll probably have to bust through that most limiting habit of staying mum about your grand ambitions until after you've accomplished some huge honor or figured out exactly how it's going to go down. I understand there's a certain pleasure in playing it sly and understated until that eventual triumphant moment when you can ceremoniously unfurl the greatness you've kept under wraps… and really shock the shit out of all the folks who weren't expecting this much from you. Alas, that methodology robs you of all the potential goodies—smart suggestions, supportive encouragement, opportunities for collaboration, free publicity, etc.—which could be yours if, instead, you cleverly choose to casually talk it up while still in the process of making it happen. While constructing the blueprints for your impending takeover of the world, be sure to include lots of conversation reciprocity… because it'll both benefit the quality of your ultimate result(s) and ward off that 'disconnected' feeling you Caps sometimes suffer from.

AQUARIUS (January 20-February 18): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Aquarius, this eclipse falls in your solar 12th, astrology's official 'Land of No-Sense' (alternately known as 'The Realm Behind the Veil', 'Home of the Spirits and Their Priceless Epiphanies' and, to those who don't trust in the existence of anything they can't see or touch or prove, 'A World of Make-Believe')… and, as a result, there's not as much clear direction or practical advice I can provide. What happens in the 12th house is ultimately between you and the Universe, and nobody else is likely to know whether what you bring forth from your 12th-house machinations ought to be properly classified as 'divine inspiration' or 'self-indulgent delusion'. That assessment, I suppose, might depend on if you entered the unintelligible abyss of psychic everythingness (1) with the serious intent of humbly surrendering your ego's dominance for a taste of mystical Higher-Being revelation or (2) with the less-than-serious intent of escaping your ego through intoxication or other hazardous shortcuts for transcending regular ol' reality. The 12th is also known enigmatically as 'the house of self-undoing' because it symbolizes the grab-bag of activities and conditions (e.g., meditation, shamanic journeying, drunken or drugged pseudo-consciousness, insanity, enlightenment, etc.) that 'undo' the invisible cords tying our disparate bits of Being together into a distinct, coherent 'Self'. Think about how that 'undoing' might happen, more or less healthfully, before just letting it happen. Are you looking to delicately slip off your cloak of selfhood, so you may dip into temporary moments of pure communion with the cosmos—and then return, closer than ever to the intuitive truth of who you really are, beyond the name and other identifying information on file with government agencies? Or will you fall deeper into more problematic practices of 'undoing' yoiurself, pretending there aren't real-world ramifications to your private dissolution… and tempting yourself further toward a sense of captive confinement, self-imposed though it may be, from which you aren't sure how to get away?

PISCES (February 19-March 20): This week, we're privileged to welcome a Venus-kissed solar eclipse (exact on Jan 14-15) in the responsible, strategically persistent sign of Capricorn—an incredibly ideal astro-occasion for laying down a distinct, detailed action-(and-intention-)plan for attaining those heights you're eyeing, over many months of sustained effort. For you, Pisces, this eclipse falls in your solar 11th, which I'm hoping will pull you into greater participatory engagement with what your peers, your teammates, or other groups of folks with whom you share a common interest or cause are doing. In these uncertain times, it's not sufficient to merely preserve a compassionate heart in order to help heal our world; we must take decisive action. But there's no need to bite off huge burdensome hunks of the world's myriad problems to bear in solitude, when it makes much more sense to piggyback on the initiatory efforts of others and join their already-in-process ventures. In recent horoscopes, I've already made it overwhelmingly clear that togetherness (rather than 'all by your lonesome') is where it's at for you these days, whether we're talking work or play, humanitarian contribution or leisurely activity. What perhaps I haven't mentioned yet is that Jupiter's reentry into Pisces for the first time since early 1999 (which also occurs this week) is due to make this a rather memorable period in your life history. The memories you create, I should point out, will be that much more precious if they're born from experiences you've shared with a coterie of comrades who 'get' where you're coming from, and who are 'in' it with you. Of course, it's not just about the broader perspective you'll reap for yourself—it's also about how your unique impact within the larger context will change all their lives for the better, too. That said, please don't underestimate what your presence contributes.